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| Far Side of the Moon Captured on Video for the First Time | |  One of NASA's twin GRAIL spacecrafts has captured a video of Moon's far side for the first time. Earth's tidal forces have slowed down Moon's rotation so that it always presents one side to us. The other side, although receiving as much light as the front side, is called the far (or, more poetically, dark) side of the Moon, notably giving the name to one of Pink Floyd's most successful albums. The far side of Earth's only natural satellite has been photographed before (by Apollo 16, for example), but there has been no ground exploration there and no video was ever taken. The GRAIL (Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory) project consists of two identical spacecraft orbiting the moon - Ebb and Flow - each carrying a special camera called MoonKAM (Moon Knowledge Acquired by Middle school students.) Thousands of fourth to eighth graders to select areas on the lunar surface to be photographed by the MoonKAM, and the imagery will be sent back to them to study. "The quality of the video is excellent and should energize our MoonKAM students as they prepare to explore the moon," said Maria Zuber, GRAIL principal investigator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. In the 30-second video, you can see Moon's heavily cratered, rough surface; notable sights include Moon's north pole, the 560-mile-wide Mare Orientale impact basin and, near the bottom of the screen, the 93-mile-wide Drygalski crater. Image credit: NASA |
| Google: Microsoft Ad Campaign Is Full of Myths | |  Google doesn't want you to believe everything Microsoft is writing about its privacy policies -- especially not in the ads for alternative Microsoft products set to appear in major newspapers. The search giant published a blog post written by policy manager Betsy Masiello, in hopes of sorting out the myths and facts behind its new privacy policy. Microsoft, among other sources, have been criticizing Google for its disloyalty to users, acting in favor of its own self-interest. Particularly, accusations have centered around the idea that Google sells users' private information to advertisers. The post seeks to dispel seven "myths" about Google's alleged privacy issues. While Masiello doesn't outright say the post is a response to Microsoft, five of the seven myths are sourced to Wednesday morning's Microsoft post. Here are the seven statements Google makes to respond to what's been said on the web: Google does not, as Fairsearch wrote, sell user information. Advertisers buy ads that match keywords, based on anonymous data. Google's privacy controls have not changed, as Microsoft wrote they had. Google's privacy changes are meant to benefit users not advertisers, as Microsoft wrote. Google doesn't read your email, as Microsoft wrote. Google's apps are safe and government-certified, unlike what Microsoft wrote. Google's privacy changes don't jeopardize government information, as SafeGov.org wrote. Google disagrees with Microsoft's statement that Microsoft's privacy policy is superior to Google's. Are you satisfied with Google's response or do you feel as if your private information is in jeopardy? Let us know in the comments. Image courtesy of iStockphoto, picmov |
| How to Prepare Your Social Game for Massive Growth | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 10:22 PM | James Phillips |
|  Selecting the right NoSQL database can be difficult. It seems like a new NoSQL database project appears every week. Sorting through the options can be daunting. There are various classes of NoSQL database: key-value, document, graph, columnar. Each data model has pros and cons. Which is right for a social game? There is a lot of talk about "Big Data" in addition to NoSQL. Are these the same thing? Let's sort through these questions, in reverse order: Big Data vs. Big Audience There are two fundamental problems being addressed at the data layer today. Big Data. Data is being generated at an unprecedented rate. How can you efficiently analyze these extremely large datasets and identify patterns, trends and opportunities? This is the "Big Data" problem. Technologies like Hadoop, Map-Reduce and Cassandra are solutions built for analyzing very large datasets. They are generally batch-oriented and focused on analysis. Big Audience. Social games have user counts measured in the millions. Millions of users put tremendous pressure on a database -- regardless of the size of the dataset. Even with only a few bytes per user (and thus a fairly small aggregate dataset size), keeping up with a non-stop stream of random reads and writes from a large number of concurrent users is incredibly hard. This is the Big Audience problem and what NoSQL databases are designed to address. Of course, if you have a Big Audience, you are probably going to generate Big Data. And most social games deploy both a transactional NoSQL database for real-time data serving to the application and a Big Data solution for data analysis. Classes of NoSQL Database The term "NoSQL" database is an unfortunate choice. More accurate would be "non-relational," transactional database. This is the consistent characteristic across these "NoSQL" databases (some of which, confusingly, do support at least a subset of SQL). So if these solutions are not relational, what are they? There are a number of data models: key-value, document, column-oriented and graph to name the most common. Each model has pros and cons making them more or less appropriate for a given application. Document-oriented databases power the majority of NoSQL deployments behind social games, largely due to their balance of four key criteria: Performance. The document data model keeps related data in a single physical location in memory and on disk (a document). This allows consistently low-latency access to the data -- reads and writes happen with very little delay. Database latency can result in perceived "lag" by the player of a game and avoiding it is a key success criterion. Dynamic elasticity. Because the document approach keeps records "in one place" (a single document in a contiguous physical location), it is much easier to move the data from one server to another while maintaining consistency -- and without requiring any game downtime. Moving data between servers is required to add and remove cluster capacity to cost-effectively match the aggregate performance needs of the application to the performance capability of the database. Doing this at any time without stopping the revenue flow of the game can make a material difference in game profitability. Schema flexibility. While all NoSQL databases provide schema flexibility, key-value and document-oriented databases enjoy the most flexibility. Column-oriented databases still require maintenance to add new columns and to group them. A key-value or document-oriented database requires no database maintenance to change the database schema (to add and remove "fields" or data elements from a given record). Query flexibility. Balancing schema flexibility with query expressiveness (the ability to ask the database questions, for example, "return me a list of all the farms in which a player purchased a black sheep last month") is important. While a key-value database is completely flexible, allowing a user to put any desired value in the "value" part of the key-value pair, it doesn't provide the ability to ask questions. It only permits accessing the data record associated with a given key. I can ask for the farm data for user A, B and C to see if they have a black sheep, but I can't ask the database to do that work on my behalf. Document-databases provide the best balance of schema flexibility without giving up the ability to do sophisticated queries. Which Option Is Right for Your Game? If you agree that a document-oriented approach is correct, then you've already substantially reduced the number of contenders. If you were previously considering Big Data and NoSQL as synonymous, you've further reduced the set. From there, you should consider the important attributes we previously identified: elasticity, concurrent random read latency and throughput, and data format flexibility. Additionally, one must consider the ease with which developers can build applications that interact with the database. Are there well-maintained and documented SDKs/client libraries? Is there a community of users to provide support and guidance? Is the technology being actively developed, enhanced and improved? Can you get commercial support if desired? If you are considering building a social game, you must consider the infrastructure requirements to support growth. Your choice of database technology is arguably the most important infrastructure component decision you will make. |
| What Are the Presidential Candidates' Stances on Important Tech Issues? | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 9:07 PM | Alex Fitzpatrick |
|  The 2012 race for the White House is well underway. During the numerous debates, campaign speeches and addresses, the five remaining presidential candidates have been outspoken about their stances on unemployment, education and foreign policy. But there's one area they haven't been very vocal on: technology. Just where do these presidential hopefuls stand on issues like the Internet, high-speed connectivity and digital innovation? We did a little digging to find out. Barack Obama President Obama revolutionized the role that technology plays in campaigning during his 2008 bid for the presidency. His team at the White House continues to find innovative new ways to use tech to connect the president with Americans, like this week's Google+ hangout. But does such a technologically-savvy president have a policy agenda to match? Last month, the Obama administration came down against SOPA (the Stop Online Piracy Act) and its sister bill in the Senate, PIPA (PROTECT IP Act). During a Google+ hangout Monday evening, Obama said that America needs to protect the "fundamental integrity of the Internet as an open and transparent system." In 2010, Obama created the Internet Policy Task Force inside the Commerce Department, tasked with reviewing matters of "privacy policies, copyright, (the) global free flow of information, cybersecurity, and innovation in the Internet economy." Obama has made increased cybersecurity a priority. "(A) cyber threat is one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation" said the president in May 2009. "America's economic prosperity in the 21st century will depend on cybersecurity." In September of last year, Obama signed the America Invents Act, which the administration claims "helps companies and inventors avoid costly delays and unnecessary litigation -- letting them focus instead on innovation and job creation." On digital infrastructure, Obama issued a National Wireless Initiative in February of last year to bring high-speed wireless access to 98% of Americans within five years. The plan calls for a near doubling of available wireless spectrum for mobile devices and a one-time $5 billion investment in wireless 4G infrastructure for rural areas. The Obama administration has also attempted to create a more "open and accountable" government on the web. Data.gov allows simple public access to government data, while the White House's We The People petition platform has generated some substantial responses (Although not all responses have met the satisfaction of users). And on Space? Obama has said he's a strong advocate of space travel, but he has laid out less-than-urgent deadlines for NASA accomplishments: a visit to an asteroid by 2025 and Mars sometime in the 2030s. Mitt Romney Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign has clearly studied the technology-in-campaigns playbook of Obama's '08 team while updating it and adding some moves of their own. But what's the former Massachusetts Governor's stance on the tech issues of today? Romney called a "very broad law" like SOPA "a mistake" during a CNN Republican debate held before the South Carolina Primary. "The law as written is far too intrusive, far too expansive, far too threatening to freedom of speech and movement of information across the Internet," said Romney."The law as written is far too intrusive, far too expansive, far too threatening to freedom of speech and movement of information across the Internet," said Romney. "It would have a potentially depressing impact on one of the fastest-growing industries in America, which is the Internet and all those industries connected to it. At the same time, we care very deeply about intellectual content that's going across the Internet. And if we can find a way to very narrowly, through our current laws, go after those people who are pirating, particularly those from offshore, we'll do that. But a very broad law -- I think that's a mistake." A 2007 book authored by Lisa Ray Turner and Kimberly Field wrote that Romney has previously called for increased investment in technology and tech education. And on the matter of attracting foreigners to start small business ventures in the U.S. (including tech startups), Romney said in a 2007 interview that he "like(s) the idea of the best and brightest in the world coming here. I'd rather have them come here permanently rather than come and go, but I believe our visa program is designed to help us solve gaps in our employment pool." Romney's space plans aim higher than Obama's, but they orbit a bit closer to Earth than those of Gingrich. During a CNN debate before this week's Florida primary, Romney said he'd like to focus investments "here," meaning Earth. But also said he believes "in a very vibrant and strong space program," and made a bid for increased commercialization of space travel and exploration. Mitt's message struck a chord with some well-known figures in space travel. Gene Cernan (the last man to walk on the moon) and Bob Crippen (the first Space Shuttle pilot) are among the signatories of an open letter supporting Mitt's space stance and his bid for the presidency. "Restoring the U.S. space program to greatness will require the leadership, management skill, and commitment to American exceptionalism possessed by only one candidate in this race: Mitt Romney," reads the letter. "We support Mitt's candidacy and believe that his approach to space policy will produce results instead of empty promises." Newt Gingrich Newt Gingrich's recently announced plan to build a colony on the Moon by "the end of (his) second term," (a statement ambitious on two fronts) has become the subject of much discussion (and some ridicule). Gingrich evoked John F. Kennedy and the Apollo Project when defending his plan during a pre-Florida debate: "Look at what John F. Kennedy said in 1961: 'We will go to the moon in this decade,'" said Gingrich. "No American had orbited the Earth. The technology didn't exist. And a generation of young people went into science and engineering, and they were tremendously excited. And they had a future.""Look at what John F. Kennedy said in 1961: 'We will go to the moon in this decade,'" said Gingrich. "No American had orbited the Earth. The technology didn't exist. And a generation of young people went into science and engineering, and they were tremendously excited. And they had a future. The program I envision would probably end up being 90% private sector, but it would be based on a desire to get NASA out of the business of trying to run rockets, and to create a system where it's easy for private sector people to be engaged. I want to see us move from one launch occasionally to 6 or 7 launches a day because so many private enterprises walk up and say, we're prepared to go do it." But, like Romney, Newt believes America should give more incentives to the private sector of space travel, including "prizes" as incentives. Newt's space race aside, where's his heart on other tech issues? Gingrich, like the other candidates, came down against SOPA. "If a company finds that it has genuinely been infringed upon it has the right to sue," said Newt during a recent debate, "but the idea that we're going to preemptively have the government start censoring the Internet on behalf of giant corporations' economic interests strikes me as exactly the wrong thing to do." In a 2003 book, Newt advocated increased math and science education and increased funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF). Cybersecurity is also on Newt's radar, and he said during a recent CNN Foreign Policy debate that he's worried that it's "something that we do not talk enough about." Ron Paul The Texas Republican Representative has a strong, focused online following. But does that mean he's pro-tech? Overall, Paul opposes attempts by the Federal government to exercise more control over the Internet, and he's particularly concerned with Internet privacy. The federal government has no right tracking who uses the Internet and why they are doing so," said Paul in a 2008 interview. As a Libertarian and vocal proponent of freedom of speech, opposition to SOPA and PIPA were natural for Paul. Paul was the first of the presidential hopefuls to acknowledge and take a stance on SOPA. "They want to take over the Internet," said Paul in reference to the legislation. Paul has argued in favor of free-market, non-government solutions to providing high-speed Internet access to more Americans. "I believe that this can be best accomplished through deregulation and allowing the free market to work, said Paul. "Federal grants and subsidies will only elevate certain providers while holding back others." Paul is against network neutrality. In 2006, Rep. Ron Paul voted against an amendment to the Communications, Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act which would have included network neutrality in the bill. Network neutrality is the idea that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) should treat all Internet users (and traffic) as equal. Proponents of the idea argue that it's how the Internet has always worked, while detractors argue that government regulation of the Internet would drive up costs. Paul feels that increased regulations (like enforced net neutrality) on ISPs would decrease competition and consumer choice. "The best way to address the concerns of proponents of Net neutrality is to remove government-imposed barriers to entry into the Internet provider market," said Paul in 2008. And what of Paul's plans for outer space? He voted in favor of a bill that promoted the commercialization of space travel and exploration, while he has also warned of the danger of militarizing space. Rick Santorum Like the rest of the candidates, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum To Boldly Go...To The White House Perhaps as a result of SOPA and PIPA, the tech community is becoming more engaged with the world of politics. As technology becomes more and more a part of everyday life for Americans, the candidates can be expected to address tech issues more frequently as Election Day looms nearer. Keep following Mashable for the latest on any tech policy-related announcements made by the presidential contenders. Which candidate do you think is the most "tech-friendly?" Let us know in the comments below. Image courtesy of iStockphoto, sjlocke; Flickr, Matt Ortega, World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, Gage Skidmore |
| How 9 Tech Giants Traded After Going Public [INFOGRAPHIC] | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 8:19 PM | Matt Silverman |
|  Now that Facebook has filed paperwork for its Initial Public Offering, the world will be watching the company's value. Assuming the SEC approves the filing, stocks will likely begin trading in May. The social network will be offering $5 billion in stock, and some estimates of market value place the company at a whopping $100 billion. Given the hubbub (or the hullabaloo, if you really want to get technical), we thought it might be wise to look back at the history of tech companies that have gone public. The IPO is all very well, but how valuable did they remain once the stocks start flying? SEE ALSO: 10 Giant Things Less Valuable Than Facebook The results, as our friends at Statista have compiled below, are mixed. In the first 15 days of trading, some stock values shot up like a rocket (Yahoo), while others enjoyed a steady value before tanking (Groupon). Other 15-day rides, like eBay's, were a bit rockier. The charts below show value as an index of 100, not in dollar amounts, so we can compare the paths of companies that went public years or decades apart. We've also included a handy graphic that shows what $100 of stock at the time of the offering would be worth today, had you held onto it. Do you think Facebook's valuation will see a rocky road, a steady plateau, or a steep climb once it hits the market? Give us your prediction in the comments. Infographics courtesy of Statista.com. Image courtesy of iStockphoto, sitox |
| Super Bowl Viewers Will Check Phones 10 Times During the Game [STUDY] | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 4:27 PM | Sam Laird |
|  Nearly half of Super Bowl XLVI viewers will check their mobile device as many as 10 times during the game, and almost a third of viewers under age 45 will watch the game "with device in hand." More than 80% of viewers say they'll use their mobile device during the game at least as much as they did during last year's Super Bowl. That's all according to a recent survey by research firm Harris Interactive. The study was commissioned by the mobile marketing company Velti, and shows that fans are increasingly reaching beyond just their in-person friends and the game broadcast itself for Super Bowl updates and interaction. The survey also reinforces the potential that mobile brings for innovative advertisers -- and the possible drawbacks of shelling out $3.5 million for a 30-second commercial break slot. Just 13% of poll respondents who plan to use their mobile device said they will do so during actual game action. That means they'll likely be pecking away for stats, Facebook, or Twitter updates during the valuable commercial broadcast time. Velti executive Krishna Subramanian said that the study results are indicative of a changing paradigm for advertisers. "Viewers are sitting in front of the television with a mobile device in their hand and they'll likely check that 'second' screen often," Subramanian said in a press release. "There's no going back now from the fact that the Super Bowl is truly a two-screen experience. Mobile is the second screen that completes the full circle of user engagement - turning advertising into content." Woman are apparently much more interested than men in the always-hyped Super Bowl halftime show. They are half as likely -- 13% compared to 26% -- to check out their smartphones and tablets during the break. Mobile users between the ages of 18 and 34 will be especially wedded to their devices during the game. Fans who said they plan to look at least once predicted an average of 19 device-checks over the course of the Super Bowl broadcast. The survey was conducted in late January among more than 1,400 American adults who own mobile devices and plan to watch Super Bowl XLVI. Will you watch with your mobile device by your side? Do you think broadcast ads still have value? Let us know in the comments. Infographic of Velti. |
| Extreme Close-Up: Nikon's Latest CoolPix Camera Has a Whopping 42x Zoom | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 3:55 PM | Peter Pachal |
|  Nikon just unveiled a swarm of new compact cameras, but let's cut right to the chase and target the real highlight: a point-and-shoot model with an incredible 42x optical zoom. According to reports, that makes it the world's longest zoom of any point-and-shoot. The CoolPix P510, available February for $430, looks similar to a DSLR camera with a large wide-angle lens and swivel LCD. The extreme zoom is definitely the star, pulling in faraway objects with a zoom that ranges from 24 to 1,000 millimeters. Of course, such a long zoom will exacerbate concerns about blurred images due to camera shake, but Nikon says it's way ahead of you. The camera's advanced optical Vibration Reduction (VR) tech beefs up the image stabilization so your close-ups will have "increased stability." The other area that Nikon says the P510 excels in is low light, with a 16.1-megapixel CMOS sensor that's said to capture good pics after dark. The P150 also has a built-in GPS for geotagging photos, and it can record HD video at full resolution (1080p). SEE ALSO: Nikon Debuts New Flagship DSLR, the D4, on Eve of CES Nikon also unveiled the CoolPix P310, a low-light specialist, priced at $330. The P310 is equipped with special scene modes for non-optimal light, including preprogrammed settings Night Portrait, Night Landscape and Backlight/High Dynamic Range (HDR). Nikon also announced several point-and-shoots aimed at families on a budget (the CoolPix L810, L26 and S30), with prices ranging from $120 to $280, as well as a line of ultra-slim CoolPix models (the S9300, S6300, S4300 and S3300) from $140 to $350. The top of the slim line, the S9300, is just 1.5 inches thick and still packs an 18x optical zoom. You can browse all of Nikon's new CoolPix cameras for 2012 in the gallery below. Looking for a point-and-shoot with outstanding zoom ability? And more important, are you willing to lay down $430 for one? Let us know in the comments. |
| iPad 3 Rumor Roundup: Specs Leaked, Amazon Hints at March 29 Launch | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 3:19 PM | Samantha Murphy |
|  Rumors have been circulating for months about the next-generation iPad. Now they're really ramping up. Wednesday saw the release of its supposed specs, and when it could arrive. Boy Genius Report claimed a source had an iPad 3 prototype, and sent the tech site various development images that reveal more information about the device and its components. Meanwhile, Amazon added two iPad 3 books to its European site -- Ipad 3 pour les nuls, or iPad 3 for Dummies in French, and Auf die Schnelle iPad 3, which is German for iPad 3 on the Fly, according to a BGR. 8 Rumors About the iPad 3: What It Could Look Like, When It Could Arrive |
| Firefox 10 Is Here. Is it Worth Your Time? | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 2:59 PM | Christina Warren |
|  It's version 10. Do you know where your Firefox is? Yes, rev up your update engines. Firefox 10 -- the latest in a dizzying series of upgrades -- is now available for your browsing pleasure. This is Mozilla's seventh major browser release in the last 10 months. After releasing Firefox 4 in March 2011, Mozilla adopted a rapid release schedule similar to the cycle Google employs with its Chrome browser. The new schedule means that users get a new version of Firefox every six weeks, rather than every two to three years. Like other recent releases, Firefox 10 focuses on under-the-hood enhancements and bug fixes, rather than scads of new features or changes to the user interface. Still, Mozilla has added some new front-facing features to Firefox 10, including improvements to add-on compatibility and built-in developer tools. Firefox now automatically marks add-ons as compatible with the browser without requiring add-on developers to code support by hand. The browser also automatically checks for add-on updates every 24 hours. As for the developer tools, Firefox 10 now includes a tightly-integrated set of CSS, HTML and DOM inspectors. This allows web developers to quickly zero in on any portion of a live (or locally hosted) web page and enable real-time previewing. If you're familiar with WebKit's Web Inspector in Safari and Chrome, you'll feel right at home with Firefox 10's tool suite. It won't replace add-ons like Firebug for advanced developers, but it's a great lightweight, built-in option. Below is a video that Mozilla created to show off the new developer tools in Firefox 10: When Firefox announced its decision to switch to a more frequent update cycle, some enterprise users criticized Mozilla, pointing out that frequent browser updates are untenable for organizations that need to follow strict rules for basic software updates. With Firefox 10, Mozilla is offering those users access to what it calls "Firefox ESR," or Extended Support Release. Organizations that use Firefox ESR will get support and updates for 42 weeks, rather than the standard six. Security updates will still be pushed out on schedule. What do you think of Firefox 10? Is it enough to win you back from Chrome, Safari or IE 9? Let us know in the comments. |
| Amazon Pulls Plug on PayPhrase Service | | Wednesday, February 01, 2012 2:23 PM | Samantha Murphy |
|  Amazon is pulling the plug on its PayPhrase program, which was originally set up so you can check out of the online retailer faster. Amazon announced on its PayPhrase page that the service will no longer be available starting on or around February 20. Orders placed prior to that date won't be affected, even if they won't have shipped yet. Launched in 2009, PayPhrase combines shipping and payment data so you can check out using a key phrase of your picking, such as "I love you" or "Jake's Allowance," then a four-digit PIN. "Since launching PayPhrase, we've learned a great deal about how our customers like to check out," Amazon said. "We've applied many of these lessons to other features on Amazon.com." In other words, customers apparently don't like to enter a phrase and a PIN -- although perhaps one or the other, by themselves, might have been more popular. The company has never revealed how many customers used PayPhrase. SEE ALSO: Analyst: Amazon Sold 6 Million Kindle Fires Over the Holidays As for what the company will do with the PayPhrase information entered by users, Amazon noted that it will ensure the security of all payment and shipping information. Although Amazon's Manage PayPhrases page will no longer be available, businesses that use the service will have access to a new purchase-delegation tool. Purchase Delegation allows customers to enable another person to place orders on their behalf. For those still looking to do express checkout on the site, the company encourages customers to check out Amazon 1-Click -- a tool that allows shoppers to check out with one click, thanks to saved shipping and payment information. Why do you think Amazon killed the PayPhrase? Let us know in the comments. BONUS: The Most Popular Amazon Products From the 2011 Holidays |
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